Gran Turismo 5 garaged until fall?

Source: An interview with Spanish Web site Canarias Al Dia, spotted by Gran Turismo fan site GT Planet.

What we heard: Polyphony Digital certainly isn't trying to set any speed records with the development of its racer Gran Turismo 5. Having initially been revealed in 2005, the game appeared to be on track for a March 2010 release in Japan, with series creator Kazunori Yamauchi saying to expect the Western release a few months later. However, that plan hit the skids last month, when Sony postponed the game's launch in Japan for an indeterminate amount of time.

Following the game's delay, initial Japanese reports indicated that the game had been bumped back three months in the island nation, signaling a Western launch this fall. That speculation appears to have gained some substantiation this week, courtesy of Sony Computer Entertainment Portugal president James Armstrong.

As reported by GT Planet and translated by GameSpot, Armstrong told Canarias Al Dia that he expects Sony to release the long-awaited GT5 this fall in time for the important holiday shopping season. "We believe that we are launching the product this fall, before Christmas, even though this isn't yet decided," he said.

Armstrong went on to say that while he doubts GT5 will make use of Sony's new camera-based motion controller, he wasn't willing to rule it out. The controller, which is rumored to be named the PlayStation Arc, was also initially slated to be available in Japan in March. Sony has since bumped the device's launch back to this fall.

The official story: "We haven't announced the launch date for GT5," a SCE America representative told GameSpot.

Bogus or not bogus?: Looking not bogus that Sony is targeting a fall release for GT5. However, Armstrong himself noted that the game's launch window is still up in the air, so Polyphony Digital has clearly been given license to take as much time as it needs.